Enthusiasm filled the air as the strongest and mightiest bullocks of the state ran with all their might to be crowned the fastest at the age-old ‘Kakkoor Kalavayal’, a post-harvest temple festival near Muvattupuzha in Ernakulam district.
But the festival at Kakkoor hamlet, which has been hosting the event for the past 125 years, has drastically shrunk in size and number of participants. The annual celebration used to once transform the village into a hot spot for hundreds of cattle lovers across the state.
Though the star attraction of the event was the bullock race, the ‘kalavayal’ or cattle market used to be a hub for sale of cattle, till until two decades ago. But, with the entry of modern technology into the agriculture sector and diminishing farming land, the bullocks have taken a backstage.
“In my younger days I bought several bulls from Pollachi, Nagercoil and Karnataka for the kalavayal,” said John K K, a veteran bullock cart rider, who was in the crowd cheering the racing oxen on Saturday.
John, 63, who has won several bullock races across the state, still boasts of the one sovereign gold coin he got as the first recognition. With the prices of yellow metal going northwards, the cash awards took the place of gold coins.
Joseph Periapuram, a 59-year-old villager, said though he missed the good old days when the festival meant more cooperation among villagers, he is proud of the young menfolk in the village who are still riding on the high spirits of the festival. “When farming took a back seat in the area most of us sold our bullocks. But, off late, local youngsters have bought bulls and reared them for this annual event and revived the love for bullocks in the village,” he said.
T D Kuriakose, a Class XII student is the perfect example. He owns a pair of bullocks that he rears for the event. “Winning is not important, the bull craze is infectious and this is what brings us to the event every year,” he noted.
The high-point of the festival is the ‘Maramadi’ race, in which the bullocks run in muddy-watered paddy fields. A 400-metre race was also conducted on the local roads. The oil-massaged oxen pairs with sharpened horns also took part in a beauty contest.
Telling Blow by Animal Activists
In the past, the competition had no hard and fast rules on the qualification criteria for the bullocks. That meant even unwell bullocks were forced to race and, more often than not, were given alcohol to boost their performance. But, intervention from animal rights organisations has been a boon for the bovine animals.
“We are not protesting against the festival, but the brutality meted out to the bulls,” said B Ambily, founding member of animal welfare group ‘Daya’. ‘Daya’ has been protesting against the cattle race since 2001 and has been instrumental in incorporating changes in the format.
Earlier, cart drivers used to twist the animals’ tails at the starting point to give a kickstart and the bullocks were whipped with sticks fitted with pointed iron rods. But now the whips are replaced with plastic bottles much to the relief of animal right groups.
As protest voices of animal activists got louder, the Kerala High Court had given an order that the race should be held only under the supervision of a government official. A veterinary doctor also checks whether the animal is healthy and confirms that neither the bullocks nor the cart drivers are intoxicated.
(This article was written by me for The New Indian Express, you can read the article as published here.)
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